ShikaTema Stories
by JuliaJuliaJulia
Summary: I'm using a random word generator to make some prompts. All ShikaTema stuff, and will update this with multiple one-shots. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Hi! So this is just a series of one-shots about Shikamaru and Temari done by randomly generated prompts. Please enjoy, get in touch with prompts and review! I am new to writing so any tips are welcome.

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto_

* * *

1\. Test

Shikamaru dragged his tired feet through the door and dumped his keys on the table. It had been a long day at work and all he wanted was to put his feet up and sleep.

"Hello?" he called out down the hallway. He walked into the kitchen when there was no reply and pulled a beer out of the fridge. If Temari was working late, he was going to watch some TV and fall asleep on the couch, just as he liked it.

When he came back into the living room, hoping to pull out the recliner and get into his sweatpants, he was met with something he was not expecting at all. His beautiful wife stood in front of him, in some black lacy lingerie that frankly might as well have not existed, not that he was complaining. He stood speechless eyeing up every part of what he was seeing, not stopping for a minute to question why she was here. She stood with her feline eyes crinkled by the smile that was easing onto her face, knowing full well the effect she was having on her husband. If it wasn't obvious enough by what she was seeing in his trousers, his face said it all anyway; she hadn't looked better since their wedding.

"Happy anniversary," she said quietly as she began to step towards him, wrapping her arms around his waist. It had been over a month since they'd had the time or energy to do anything, and she was ready to give Shikamaru a night worth the wait if it wasn't for one small word:

"Oh." She pulled away from their embrace to get a look at her husband's face. He couldn't hide it from her; the surprise and realisation that today was in fact their second anniversary. Immediately she was out of his arms and storming upstairs to their bedroom. How could he forget their anniversary? She had been planning this for the last month, and she thought he would at least have realised how long it had been for them.

"Wait, Temari!" He ran up the stairs behind her trying to stop her but she slammed the bedroom door on his face. "Come on, I'm sorry. It's been really busy at work and it just slipped my mind. I remembered it I promise!" When the door didn't open he sat down on the stairs opposite and muttered, "Who even celebrates the second one anyway?"

"I HEARD THAT!" she yelled through the door and she came out fully dressed in her usual getup. "I will be downstairs eating our favourite takeout _alone_ since only one of us bothered to make an effort for today."

He sighed and reached for her arm but she continued to march downstairs. He weaved his signs and she finally stopped dead in her tracks. "God you're an ass! Let me go now or I swear…" he stopped her with a light kiss. Calmer, but still not appeased, she said "Don't think a little kiss is going to solve this. I'm still angry with you."

"I know and I'm sorry, I'm angry with me too." He retracted his shadows and stood on the step below her. "What can I do to make it better?"

"Why do you always want me to solve things for you? It's not difficult, genius, I just want to know that you actually still care about me. Did you know it's been over a month since we last… you know?"

"What? No it hasn't."

"Yes, it has. Choji's wedding was the last time either of us even bothered to try."

"Oh god it was…" he trailed off, shocked by how their relationship, once intense and fiery, full of secret meetings and stolen kisses, was now so mundane. "Well I still care about you. Of course I do, we're just both getting older and busier. It's harder now. But I promise you are still my number one priority." He brushed some loose hairs out of her face and pulled her in for a kiss. He frowned when his lips were met by her fingers.

"Really? I'm your number one priority? I'll bet if I ask you four questions about us you won't know the answers to any of them."

He smiled. "Alright, you're on. What are you willing to bet?"

She thought for a minute and then he saw her lips curl into a playful smile he hadn't seen in so long. "My clothes. Every question you get right, something's coming off."

He laughed. Now this was the relationship he remembered. "Okay let's do this."

* * *

They sat opposite from each other in the living room. "You ready?" Temari said, armed with questions she was sure he would've forgotten, but secretly hoped he hadn't. "Okay, first question. I'll ease you in. What date is our anniversary?"

He looked at her bitterly. "21st September, very funny. Now come on, I believe I get a piece of clothing for that?" He stuck out his hand while she took off her sash. "Are you kidding? Your sash?"

"Well it was an easy question wasn't it? Okay question two. At our wedding, what flavour cake did we get?"

He didn't flinch. "Trick question, we didn't get cake we had a weird rice thing from Suna."

"Hey it's not a weird rice thing it's a Sunan delicacy. But yeah you can have it." She took off her skirt leaving just her mesh shorts behind.

"You gonna give me any properly hard questions?"

"Don't get cocky. Question three: on our second date I showed you a very particular scar. Where was it and who gave it to me?"

He stopped. He could remember clear as day where it was, on her side right next to her breast, but he was so mesmerised seeing her body for the first time he couldn't remember anything she had said. He decided to guess. "Under your ribs on your side, and Gaara."

She looked at him blankly. He could never read her. Then finally she sighed and took off her top. The black lace bra remained under it. She threw it at him. "Lucky guess," she mumbled. He just grinned at her. "Alright last question. What's my job title?"

"Your job title? What does that have to do with us?"

"My job title is what got us together in the first place. If I wasn't put in charge of the exams we never would have spent so much time together and, well, I never would have fallen in love with you." She looked at him wistfully, remembering all those years ago and how she'd felt about him then.

"Well I fell in love with you as soon as we met so… job title never meant much to me."

"Bullshit, you hated me when we first met."

"Ah, can't blame a guy for trying huh? Okay, well I'm gonna say leader of the Kazekage Guard," he said and when she nodded he continued, "Sunan ambassador to Konoha and Sunan representative to the Shinobi Union." He waited.

"And?" She smiled in victory. He hadn't been able to get this one. "What? You don't count it as a full time job taking care of you, crybaby?"

He smiled in defeat. "Okay I give up, I never thought being married to me was so bad you think you need to be paid for it. So what now?"

She stood up, grinning from ear to ear knowing full well she was in control now. She slowly pulled down her mesh shorts, aware of the view she was giving Shikamaru from the front. She watched him squirm to control himself, and took pleasure in his failure. Carefully, she eased herself onto his lap, straddling him, and kissed him slowly; all lips, then tongue and teeth biting at his lower lip to make his breath hitch just as she knew how. She slowly moved her hips over his in figures of eight making his buck forwards suddenly. She finally pulled away and looked him in the eye as she undid the buttons of his shirt. And that was all he could take.

He grabbed her face and kissed her, properly this time with nothing held back; at the same time she ripped his shirt off and chucked it away. He undid her bra and tossed it wherever, needing only to pull her closer now. He squeezed on her backside, pulling it up towards him, and she kissed his neck and his jawline. The black lingerie she had bought now lay in an irreparable pile on the floor and belt buckles were hastily pulled apart and they moved together in a flurry of hands, lips and soft, bare skin until they both lay in a pile of exhaustion on the sofa. With heavy breaths he turned to her and said,

"Well that was worth all the trouble you've given me." She flashed him a big, beautiful smile.

"Isn't it always?"


	2. Chapter 2

2\. Ball

He was settling down for a quiet night in tonight; Temari was at some fancy royal gala event that he hadn't been invited to, so he decided to take over her apartment and relax. He was technically on a mission but his duties didn't start until a couple of days later, so Shikamaru was in the rare position of having free time while Temari was in town. Temari and him had agreed they were going to spend the whole two days together to make up for the months in between their last few meets, but Temari had been last minute whisked away to represent the Kazekage clan at a ball-type event for ambassadors from all the villages and village higher-ups. It was definitely not Shikamaru's scene, but then neither was dinner with his mother, so he'd set up camp in Temari's flat with takeout dinner and a movie. He was about to tuck in when the bell rang. No one knew he was here. He ignored it and heard loud banging followed by a shrill voice.

"Shikamaru! Open up it's me!" The banging persisted and he finally sighed in defeat, moving to get the door. He was met with a grinning Ino and a bemused Choji.

"What's up guys? How did you find me?"

"We're highly skilled Shikamaru don't patronise us. Now are you going to invite us in?" Ino said, practically barging in anyway.

"Uh…" Shikamaru hesitated while the two entered Temari's apartment. It was a lot more expressive than his apartment, and it contained a lot of private parts of Shikamaru and Temari's relationship; this included many pictures of the two of them which no doubt caught Ino's attention. He looked slightly embarrassed by the apartment even though it was perfect for him, and scratched the back of his neck like he usually did when he was nervous. "What do you guys want, exactly?"

They looked at each other. "Well," Choji said, "we know Temari is at a fancy ball tonight that she doesn't want to be at so much. So we figured we'd get you dressed to go join her. We've got you a ticket and everything." Shikamaru was speechless. He _really_ didn't want to schmooze with some village elders and ambassadors, but he liked the idea of seeing her tonight.

"We're playing Fairy Godmother!" squealed Ino, obviously excited at the prospect of sending Shikamaru to this ball. She pulled out two tuxedos from behind her back and grinned at him expectantly.

"What, you're going to dress me up and send me in a horse-drawn carriage to some dumb ball? Guys, it's a nice idea but she's not going to appreciate me turning up unexpectedly." Shikamaru stated plainly, hoping they would contradict him. When Ino and Choji simply rolled their eyes at him he added more defensively, "I have a whole evening planned here! Plus my food is getting all cold."

"That's the best excuse you can come up with? That you have a date with her TV set? Man, Shikamaru, she really messes with your head, doesn't she?" Choji smirked at his best friend. "Just get dressed would you? We'll finish off the food."

Shikamaru sighed. "Fine, if you insist." He said, grabbing the tuxes and heading to the bedroom smiling.

* * *

When he arrived at the ball, he really didn't know what to expect; he'd never been to anything like this before and didn't know how it worked. Waiters came around offering champagne and wine, people danced and mingled politely. The whole thing was confusing and overbearing, and he considered leaving to avoid the toxic small talk in the room. That was until he was stopped dead in his tracks by the figure he saw across the room. Golden hair, teal eyes, and a sleek black dress that showed off all the best parts of her body, Temari stood looking absolutely flawless making uncomfortable conversation with two elders. Instinctively, he moved toward her.

"…so you see, Lady Temari, many other influential women your age have decided to marry in order to improve their status further. It may be worth considering…" the elder in front of her droned on as Shikamaru approached them from behind. He placed his hand on the small of her back, causing her to flinch a little before she saw him, and her face immediately lit up.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," Shikamaru cut in smoothly, as the two greying, stocky elders wore shocked expressions on their faces, "but I was hoping for a dance with Temari before the end of the night. Do you mind?" They both shook their heads, speechless from his audacity to steal her away.

"I'm sorry, Elder Mitokado, Elder Utatane, it's been a pleasure talking to you." Before he had the chance to guide her away she was already grabbing his hand and pacing away from the elders.

She guided his hand to her waist and held the other in hers as they danced gently. "Why'd you have to do that? All they're going to do is talk about us now."

"Let them. I don't want them trying to recommend some Sunan ninja to you. Besides, you seemed like you needed a way out of there."

"Fair enough," she laughed, "I can't take these conversations anymore. Everything is about when I'm going to get married. Nice surprise seeing you here, though. Never thought I'd see Shikamaru Nara scrubbed up in a tux."

"Well, what can I say? I thought I needed to keep you on your toes so I got myself a ticket." Shikamaru smirked.

"Hmm, so that means Ino and Choji forced you to come?" When he nodded sheepishly she just smiled. "Well, you're here that's the main thing." She looked up at him, staring him right in the eye, and abruptly stopped dancing. "Let's go."

"What, we're leaving so soon? I put on a whole tux to come here. Don't you have more small talk to make? Why are we going?" Shikamaru complained, not understanding her train of thought.

"Because," she whispered as she raised her eyebrows and leaned into his ear on her tiptoes, "I made all the effort of getting into this dress, somebody else better get me out of it."

"Well, I'm not arguing with that logic." Shikamaru had never been in such a rush to get home in his life.


	3. Chapter 3

3\. Meet

She was a bag of nerves. She couldn't tell why; she had never been nervous meeting people before but something about meeting her boyfriend's mother terrified her. That was a lie. She knew exactly why she was nervous; she just wasn't ready to admit it yet.

"You ready to go?" Shikamaru called from the living room of her apartment.

"In a minute!" she yelled back, frustrated after answering the same question four times.

"You know," he said, walking into her bedroom, "it's just my mom. You don't need to dress up or put much effort in. I mean I'm just wearing a t-shirt and jeans, next to me you'll look amazing. Can we just go so we're not late?" He stood behind her looking at her in the mirror.

She fussed over her earrings. "Since when do you care about being late?"

"Since I get lectured about being late, with the possibility of getting slapped on the head. Not as fun as you think." He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek from behind. "Besides, you look beautiful. And it's freaking me out how much girly stuff you're doing."

She shot him a glare over her shoulder. "I just want to make sure I make a good impression. It doesn't help Ino's already introduced me as 'the girl your son is sleeping with'."

"Well, she's not wrong is she?" When Temari showed no sign of finding him funny, he laughed. "Come on, she going to love you. Did I tell you she always wanted a daughter? So much so, she used to dress me up and all."

Temari stopped. "Wait a second." Shikamaru started walking out of the door. "Come back here! I need to hear more about this, you can't leave me hanging!" She grabbed her keys and phone and started moving after him.

"If you want to hear more, move your butt let's go!"

* * *

They stood outside the door to the impressive Nara household, coated with ornate wood carvings of deer and woodland. Temari fidgeted with her dress as Shikamaru tried to snake an arm around her waist. She jumped out of his reach immediately. "What are you doing? I'm meeting your mom for the first time, no touching allowed."

"Since when was that a rule?" Before she could answer the door opened with a smiling Yoshino.

"I thought I heard my son complaining. Come in, come in both of you!" She stepped aside and gestured into the house. "I must say, I was so excited when Shikamaru told me he was bringing a girl home. Ino has been keeping me updated for weeks, I was wondering how long it was going to take you to introduce me." She looked expectantly at Shikamaru. When he simply wore a more confused expression she slapped his arm. "What, am I going to have to wait longer?"

"Ow! Mom, this is Temari, and Temari this is my abusive mother."

Both Yoshino and Temari shot him a glare, and in what seemed like practised synchrony said, "Don't talk about your mother that way." They smiled at each other.

"Sorry," Temari said, "I've just gotten so used to scolding him nowadays, but that's more your area."

"Rubbish!" Yoshino said, with renewed enthusiasm, "I've always needed someone to help me keep him in check. Now come inside, I'm only used to cooking for Choji when Shikamaru brings friends over so I'm afraid there's a lot of food to finish."

* * *

After a hefty meal of fish, grilled meats, heaps of rice, noodles and vegetables, topped off with dessert, all three were ready to pass out soon. They continued to talk as Yoshino made tea for them. "So Temari, have you taken Shikamaru to meet your parents yet?"

Temari looked at Shikamaru and then back at Yoshino. "Ma…" Shikamaru started.

"Um, sadly he won't get the chance to, although I would pay good money to see him try to impress them. They passed away when I was a young girl." Temari smiled a sad smile at her to ease the tension in her voice.

For some time Yoshino was taken aback speechless. Then she turned to Shikamaru. "Idiot! How come you didn't tell me this before? Honestly you are a piece of work sometimes Shikamaru Nara." She turned to a now laughing Temari. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know."

"No it's fine, I didn't expect you to, don't worry about it." Temari had been fighting off a yawn for the last ten minutes, but finally it made its way to her throat and escaped. Yoshino yawned in tandem.

"Well, looks like Temari and I are exhausted. You can do the dishes as punishment for not telling me anything about Temari before she came." Yoshino smiled at her son.

"Wha..?" Shikamaru opened his mouth to protest, but realised it was futile; he would end up doing the dishes regardless. "Fine," he said as the two women made their way to the living room.

"You've trained him better than I thought," Yoshino said to Temari as she put her arm around her and guided her to the sofa. "I have to say, you're not what I expected from Ino's rather crude descriptions. Of course, you are as beautiful as she said, but you have just the right spirit Shikamaru needs. Thank you for being in his life."

Temari was flustered. She never expected to receive a compliment from the tough Nara matriarch; let alone one as nice as that. "Thank you, Mrs. Nara, but I'm very much the lucky one. Thanks to your son I've been able to feel a happiness that I haven't felt since I was a child. He's helped me fill a gap in my life that has been there so long I forgot it existed."

Yoshino smiled sadly at the young woman she saw in front of her. "I've seen first-hand what impact losing a parent has on a child. I'm very impressed with your maturity and strength, which no doubt you didn't have any choice but to develop; however, I firmly believe everyone needs a parent-figure in their life. It's the reason I never let Shikamaru see my sadness. I don't want him to feel like he should take care of me when in reality it is the other way around. How you've managed all these years without one, I have no idea."

Temari liked the way Yoshino looked at her; with nothing but respect and care, not a shred of pity in sight. She felt like she could talk to her. "Well, it hasn't been easy. When you put your body through a lot it becomes calloused; it's the same with your emotions. I didn't honestly believe I would love someone again, but I've been pleasantly surprised. To be honest, I wasn't close to my father, but as for my mother I still feel that gap in everything I do. She would have loved meeting Shikamaru, or seeing me happy. I've never had someone to stop me feeling that space. I mean, I have my brothers but it's not the same as having a mom. I guess just like you aren't emotional in front of Shikamaru, I'm not emotional in front of them; I've brought them up."

"Well, now you do. I might not be your mother but if ever you need advice from a woman, I'm here. You've been alone long enough, my dear, now it's time for you to feel loved."

"I hope you're not excluding me from this." Shikamaru walked back into the room rubbing his hands with a dishcloth.

The two women laughed. "Of course not, I'll take all the love I can get." Temari grabbed his hand as he perched on the armrest next to her.

"What happened to the 'no touching' rule?" he smirked.

"Well, I think your mom broke that first."

* * *

They said their goodbyes and got given a whole basket full of leftovers. As Temari waved her way out of the door, Yoshino grabbed her son's arm. "If you're as smart as we've raised you to be," she whispered, "you'll know you can't mess this up. Clear?"

For once Shikamaru didn't mind his mom's nagging. "You think I would have brought her to dinner if I didn't?"


	4. Chapter 4

4\. Absent

"Absent?" Temari didn't know what to think. At first she wanted to laugh and tell Shino that her son knew better than to skip class. Then she wanted to make Shino regret he'd ever accused her son of skipping class. But thankfully her more rational side kicked in and she asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Temari, he wasn't in school today. Look, go easy on him okay? He's just a kid; they all go through this phase. Just make sure he doesn't do it again."

She saw Shikadai walking up the path to their house. "Oh don't worry about that Shino, he won't be skipping school again after today." With that she put the phone down, annoyed. Clearly the laziness gene had affected her son more than she would've hoped.

When Shikadai walked through the door she decided to toy with him a little bit. She'd done her fair share of interrogations back in Suna; if her son thought she was going to go easy on him, he was wrong. She put on her usual smile. "How was your day, kiddo?"

"Good, just normal, nothing exciting." Now she was angry. If he thought he could lie to his own mother he had another thing coming. Shikadai ducked his head as he took off his shoes. When he got up to run upstairs like usual, he realised his mom hadn't moved. She was standing at the bottom of the stairs with the same fixed smile on her face.

"Really? There's nothing you want to tell me about today?" He shook his head. "You're not going to ask me how my day was?" _She doesn't know_ , Shikadai thought warily. If she did she would've said something by now.

"How was your day then mom?" Shikadai shifted his feet uncomfortably in front of her. She didn't want to admit it, but torturing her son like this was almost fun.

"Well, my day was stressful Shikadai. First of all, I had a meeting with the council representatives that didn't go according to plan. Now we have to wait for another three months to approve the Suna-Konoha railway. Then, I had to go help Mirai with her training – she's such a hard-working kid right? I always think you don't get anywhere unless you put in _time_ and _effort_." Temari started to glare at her son.

"Why are you telling me all of this mom?" Shikadai asked. _She's got nothing_ , he thought as he narrowed his eyes at her.

"Because, Shikadai," she said, edging closer to him, "after my very stressful day I wanted to come home knowing that my husband and son have also put in their all today, so we can all relax and enjoy a well-deserved break. But, imagine my surprise when I hear my son was _absent_ from school today." She raised her eyebrows at him. Shikadai's eyes widened when he heard the word 'absent' and he felt his heart start pounding. He was in for a long night.

* * *

Shikamaru opened the gate to his house and sighed. It had been a long day, and all he wanted was to see his wife and son before he ate a dinner which compensated for him missing lunch and to go to sleep.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD LIE TO ME AND I WOULDN'T KNOW! DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW DISAPPOINTED I AM SHIKADAI? I OUTTA LET YOU SLEEP OUTSIDE TONIGHT!"

Shikamaru paused in the doorway. He thought about his options: he could go in there, calm down his wife, tell his son off for whatever he'd done now and go to sleep with a headache, or… he could eat out tonight and say he got held up at the office. He was just about to creep away from the house when the door flew open.

"I DON'T CARE IF YOU WERE HELPING BORUTO OR NOT! Oh, Shikamaru, you're home." Temari looked furious, and the last thing he wanted to do at this precise moment was step into their house. He knew when she was like this it was like walking on a minefield. But, he saw no option so he smiled at her tentatively.

"What's going on?" he asked as he put his arm around Shikadai, almost protectively.

"Your son has been skipping class and lying to us about it." Temari said, matter-of-factly. She stood with her arms crossed in front of Shikadai.

"What were you doing, Shikadai?" Shikamaru sighed, and squatted down to Shikadai's level.

"It's not a big deal, I was just helping Boruto out with something, that's all. He wanted to spend a day trying out some new jutsu or something."

"That's it? We used to do that kind of stuff all the time in the academy, and worse. This one time…" he trailed off as he caught his wife's expression. He never quite knew how she managed to shoot fire from those teal eyes of hers, but he knew to stop when he was at the receiving end.

"So that's it? I do all the scolding and you swoop in with your fun stories like a hero? Would it kill you to tell your son that lying to his parents and skipping school is _wrong_?" Temari was visibly seething at Shikamaru.

He quickly turned to Shikadai. "Lying is wrong. And you shouldn't skip school. Just tell us next time okay?" Satisfied he had done good job, he stood up; but before he even had the chance to speak Temari's palm collided with his cheek.

* * *

The two Nara men sat on the porch outside with a shoji board between them watching Temari eat to her hearts content inside. They listened to their stomachs groan, Shikamaru nursing his cheek with some ice. "When are you going to learn what to say, Dad?" Shikadai grumbled.

"Don't start. I've been trying to figure it out for years."


	5. Chapter 5

5\. Definition

She could feel her heart pounding. A few minutes ago they were just Shikamaru and Temari, two people out for dinner, as they usually were on a Thursday night. This was different, of course; they had never been for one of their Thursday night dinners as a date before. Temari felt so naïve; she had even wondered if tonight was a date at all considering this was part of their usual routine. She hated how he managed to sap all the confidence out of her, especially when she needed it the most. Thankfully, her confidence had caught up with her now she was home, and she was making up for her shyness earlier.

It had started out with just a kiss. At the time it wasn't _just a kiss_ ; it was butterflies and electricity and a rollercoaster in her chest she couldn't control. Now, however, there were no butterflies or uncertainty- she knew exactly what she was doing. She was in control and nothing made her feel better.

They hurtled into the table in her hallway, and he pushed her up onto it. She could feel him smile as he kissed her, as all the tension she had ever felt melted away. She ran her hands down his back, and stopped when her hands reached the hem of his t-shirt. For a minute she was unsure again, unsure whether she should lift it up or leave it or what, but then she firmed herself. She knew what she wanted to do, and if he wasn't complaining she wasn't going to hold back. She pulled away from his mouth, leaving him leaning closer to her, and pulled his t-shirt over his head. She couldn't help the smile that creeped onto her face; to think a month ago she hadn't even realised this was what she wanted, and now there was nothing she wanted more.

"What?" he asked, smiling at her smile. She just shook her head and pulled his face close. He resisted a little, slowing everything down. He had been waiting for a long time for this and he didn't want to rush for no reason. He slowly caught her lips in his and bit down, gently. She couldn't help sighing into his mouth, and kissed him even harder. She ran her hands up and down his arms, down his back and up his chest, feeling all the grooves and curves of muscle and bone. She felt the definition in every part of him; his hands, his shoulders, his stomach, his… She broke away from their kiss, looked down and blushed. He was too far gone to be embarrassed at this point, and simply gave her a playful smile. "Your turn."

He raised her arms above her head and slid her top over her head. She wasn't going to play at being bashful about her body; she loved the way she looked, scars and all, and if someone else didn't like her, well, that was their problem. His fingers traced over her skin, feeling the peachy fuzz of hairs on the smooth, muscly surface. He was used to seeing her body as robust and tough but here it looked almost delicate. He had a sudden urge to be soft and careful, which Temari didn't reciprocate. She kissed him harder and wrapped her legs around his hips, drawing him in closer. "Wait."

She paused and pulled away. "What's up? What's wrong?" she mumbled breathlessly. He slid his arms around her bare midriff, and gently said,

"You sure you're okay with all this?" Temari looked at him dumbfounded for a while and then almost laughed.

"Shikamaru, I invited you up here, I'm not going to regret anything. Trust me," she said, sliding off the table to stand and wrapping her arms around his neck. "Don't stop now." That, and the look in her eye was all Shikamaru needed. He scooped up her face in his hand and used the other to bring her closer so they were chest-to-chest. He could feel her heart racing just like his, and felt her warm skin move against his. Before Temari could even adjust where her hands were, Shikamaru suddenly bent down and lifted her straight over his shoulder.

"Woah! Not cool, put me down _now_. What are you doing? Shikamaru!" Temari scolded unconvincingly. He couldn't wait to make it to her bedroom, so instead opted for her couch, and unceremoniously dumped her on it. They both laughed as he knelt next to her to be close to her face. He was completely taken over by some instinct he didn't know existed, but somewhere some part of him knew exactly what he was doing. He was so engrossed in what he was doing that he didn't notice Temari sit up or place her hands on his shoulders.

She swiftly rolled them over so she pinned him down on the couch and sat above him. He was surprised, and didn't know what to expect; neither did she, but their bodies guided them together over and over until finally they collapsed in a heap on the floor next to the couch.


	6. Chapter 6

6: Bench

Temari didn't really know what was going on. She was having a bad day, she knew that much, but something about this was different. She felt emotionally tired; she felt like all the energy she usually had to care about her work and getting things right had been sapped out of her. In all honest she was just sad and couldn't explain why; it was just one of those days. She sat on a bench facing the lake and thought about a conversation she'd had with Ino on this very spot a year ago.

* * *

"I'm just thinking about my dad. I can't help it; I know everyone thinks I'm back to normal but…" she trailed off, sniffling. "Just because I don't show I'm sad all the time doesn't mean I don't feel it."

Temari knew exactly what she meant. She too had lost loved ones and countless friends over the years; maybe that's why Ino had stopped her on her walk. "I understand. Sometimes just sitting and clearing your head can be the best thing to do. So just sit and think about yourself for a while, okay?" Temari said simply. She wasn't known for being kind but she gave good advice at least.

"Yeah. I wish I had someone to sit here with me though." Ino sighed. Temari rolled her eyes and took a seat next to her. "Hey Temari?"

"Yeah?"

"While I've been sitting here I've been thinking: how do you know if you love someone?" Temari raised an eyebrow at her.

"You seriously think this is something I think about?" Temari asked, looking her dead in the eye. She'd never admit it but she did in fact think about love and what it meant in her spare time.

"No, no I'm just saying. But you know what I've just realised? I think if I loved anyone I would've called them to sit here with me. And if they loved me they'd come and sit with me for no apparent reason. They'd sit with me just because I asked."

"I hope you're not trying to tell me anything here Ino…" Temari said sceptically.

"Haha! You wish. I'm not saying it wouldn't be fun but that's not what I'm getting at. I'm just saying, if there was anyone I was that close to I'd want to call them right now wouldn't I? But since I don't really want to call anyone in particular I guess I'm not in love." Ino looked off into the distance longingly, and Temari realised there was some truth to what she was saying.

* * *

As she sat on her bench looking out over the lake she toyed with the idea of calling someone to sit with her. When she asked herself who she'd call only one name came to mind. She was too proud to call her brothers, and she didn't really have a lot of friends in Konoha anyway. She didn't want to call Ino; she was a good person but honestly Temari didn't want to analyse why she was sad. She just wanted someone to distract her.

Her finger hovered over the button to dial Shikamaru's number but she hesitated. Did she really need company? Did she want to admit to herself that he was the person she would call? Ino's words kept ringing in her head, and Temari knew she didn't love Shikamaru or anything. They were good friends and colleagues and that was all. She turned the screen off and tucked the phone back into her pocket. Then she pulled it out again thinking she was stupid. Calling him didn't mean anything in particular, it just meant he was good company. Then she put it away again; how was she going to explain to him why she wanted him there? He'd probably just call her stupid and make her feel even worse. She groaned and ran her hand through her hair.

"Everything okay?" a smooth, tired voice drawled from behind her. She shot her head round, way too fast for it to be normal – that was the last voice she expected to hear.

"Shikamaru," she looked at him dazed for a few seconds and then straightened herself up, "what are you doing here?"

"I was just out to clear my head a little and I saw you looking stressed over here so I came to check it out. What's going on?" When she heard him ask a second time she realised he really, genuinely cared. She smiled softly.

"Nothing, just had a long day. Wanna sit?" she scooted over on the bench to make room for him.

"Sure." He sat down next to her and they both looked over the lake, perfectly reflecting the pink, dusk sky. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he said unexpectedly.

"Yeah. You'd never see anything like this in Suna."

"Well that's a given, Suna's a dump." He smirked and glanced at her for a reaction.

"Oi! Don't you dare, Suna's beautiful in a different way. Would you ever see a cactus here?"

"Temari, I mean this with love, but no one has ever wanted to see a cactus before. Cactus means desert, and desert means bad," he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Desert means _home_. Have you ever even been to Suna?"

"No but-"

"Exactly!" They continued to argue until the sun finally set, when they headed their separate ways. Maybe she didn't actually call him to come and sit with her, but, Temari thought as they said their goodbyes, maybe someday she would.


	7. Chapter 7

7: Striking

He knew her appearance was striking. He knew she turned heads when she walked in the street. He knew that ever since she had become a key figure in keeping the peace between nations she had also become the most eligible bachelorette in her village. What killed him was the fact other people knew it too; or even that despite everyone around her knowing it, Temari seemed oblivious to the blatant fawning.

He was in town on a mission with Kiba and Sakura. Things had wrapped up sooner than expected so Shikamaru had decided to spend some time getting to know his girlfriend's home. They hadn't made anything official yet; it wasn't as if he expected people to know she wasn't a bachelorette anymore (God, he hated that word), but he couldn't help but feel pangs of annoyance as his tour of Suna got slowly more and more derailed.

As the two of them walked through the streets of Suna, he noticed for the hundredth time how beautifully untamed everything about her was; her smile, her hair, her demeanour. He loved seeing her free and relaxed instead of confined to the reserved Union persona she had to adopt when she was there. He kept on telling awful jokes just to make her laugh so he could see that face again. It was still so foreign to him to see her smiling and laughing with him – if he was honest that was not the Temari he initially fell in love with – but he loved this side of her even more.

"Princess Temari!" A voice called from their left.

"Oh, hello Kiyoshi, how are you?" Temari said politely.

"I'm fine, please, take some vegetables. You do so much for our village, let me repay you." The young man, who looked better than Shikamaru hoped, held out a ready-tied bundle of vegetables to Temari.

"Oh no, I couldn't Kiyoshi, I'm just doing my job. Please take care."

"Wait-" he almost whispered as she strode on, radiating confidence and composure.

"Lady Temari! Please accept these clothes as a token of my appreciation for all your hard work." Another young man bowed and handed over some clothes to Temari, awaiting his praise.

"Wow, thank you, this is too much," she started to say.

"No thanks needed, Lady Temari. Do you have plans for tonight?" Shikamaru raised an eyebrow in disbelief. He'd never felt so invisible.

Temari raised her eyebrows and chuckled, "Yes, I'm sorry but I'm quite busy this month. Maybe some other time?" Shikamaru realised how much Temari had softened; a remark like that would've granted a slap out of the old Temari.

As she proceeded to point out multiple, similar-looking buildings and explain what was what, five other men stopped her in the street to offer her everything from candles to new windows. She one-by-one politely declined each man and simply apologised to Shikamaru.

"I'm really sorry. I don't know what's happening recently but it's getting worse than it used to be."

"It's alright," Shikamaru said, thinking it was entirely not alright, "it's not your fault." He knew full well in his head that it was her fault; she was too gorgeous to not be noticed. Everything about her was striking. But he would never blame it on her for looking too good; he had fallen for her the exact same way these guys had.

They were on their way back to the hotel when Man No.8 came sweeping towards Temari.

"Good evening, Lady Temari. Care to join me for dinner?" For some reason, No.8 really got under Shikamaru's skin. Maybe it was the way he had turned up in a suit with flowers for Temari, which any idiot, Shikamaru thought, would know she hated. Maybe it was the way he refused to acknowledge Shikamaru's presence next to her. Or maybe it was just the sleazy way he said "Good evening". Whatever it was, No.8 made Shikamaru snap.

"I'm sorry but she's not free. We're going to dinner tonight. And even if she was free, she would not be spending the evening with someone like you." Shikamaru glared at the man, right through his shades.

"I'll be waiting," No.8 said, turning around, "for when you're free again." He winked at Temari and slinked away.

"What a creep," Shikamaru sniggered, but when he looked down he was met with a glare from Temari. Her angry eyes pierced his.

"You are not my guardian or protector for the night, okay? You don't get to come to my village and talk to people like that, and you definitely, definitely don't have the right to decide who I go to dinner with or not. God," she stormed ahead, almost leaving Shikamaru behind, speechless.

"Temari, wait." He caught up with her quickly. "You're right, I'm sorry. I just... I hate how all of these random strangers get to tell you how they feel about you in public and I don't. I love you and I don't want all these people to think we're just colleagues. But if you really want to date Mr. Suit and Flowers I won't stand in your way." She gave him a reluctant smile.

"It was a nice suit, to be fair. Oh, come here." She gave Shikamaru a hug and kissed his cheek in front of the whole street. "I don't care who knows. This jealous thing is not a good look on you, so I'm ending this now." She laced her fingers into his and walked the rest of the way with her hand in his; and that was the last time Temari got her groceries for free.


	8. Chapter 8

Okay, so I just wanted to let you guys know I've given up on the random prompts and am now just writing whatever comes to mind! Hope this still lives up to what you guys want, and please continue to PM me with any prompts.

* * *

8: The Talk

Knocking on the door of Temari's apartment, Shikamaru exhaled and checked his watch. He was a little early but that wouldn't matter much to Temari. In fact she'd probably be impressed. The sound of her door locks opening was becoming familiar to him now, and he smiled as the door opened.

"Hi...- oh." He stopped speechless when a familiar but unexpected face greeted him, frowning.

"Nara?!" Kankuro lost control of his face for a second as he processed what was going on. When Temari had told him and Gaara they could stay at hers but she was going out for the night, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't curious about her date. She hadn't told them anything other than this date was coming by at eight to pick her up, and they were under no circumstances to open the door if he knocked. As Kankuro slowly put the pieces together, he finally understood why.

Shikamaru awkwardly cleared his throat and sheepishly asked, "Is Temari in?" deciding to play it as if they had some work to do. When Kankuro didn't reply, didn't move aside to let him in and simply eyed him suspiciously, Shikamaru added, "I just need her to come to the Hokage tower to sign something."

"Yeah, yeah, relax Nara we already know it's a date. She's not home yet but you can wait in here."

"Great," Shikamaru muttered as Kankuro reluctantly stepped aside for him to step in and shut the door behind him.

"No flowers, huh? At least the others brought flowers." Shikamaru shot Kankuro a glare.

"She doesn't like them." he said plainly, although he really had his mind on the others Kankuro mentioned. Gaara looked up from his book and gave Shikamaru a small nod.

"Have a seat, Shikamaru. It's nice to see you in a non-professional setting. We haven't had the chance to talk properly for a while. How are you?"

"Yeah, actually," Kankuro interrupted, "this is a great chance to catch up, Shikamaru. Tell me, how long have you been screwing our sister?" He stood above the now seated Shikamaru, arms crossed accusatorially. This was going to be fun, Shikamaru thought.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I haven't been 'screwing' your sister. We're both adults and we've just been going on a few dates."

"Just dating? What, you think you can just mess around with her and have some fun?" Kankuro edged closer, towering over Shikamaru. Shikamaru in turn forced himself to sit up confidently.

"It's nothing like that. Anyway, you're her younger brother aren't you? Why are you getting all protective?" Shikamaru quipped.

Kankuro scoffed and stepped into Shikamaru's personal space. "You trying to get smart with me? Come here, I'll show you whose younger, you little cocky-"

"Kankuro, calm down." Gaara sighed and put down his book. "We're her only family, Shikamaru. Of course we're going to be protective. We're a lot closer than we used to be." He stood and circled round to face Shikamaru. The two brothers stared at Shikamaru, arms crossed and eyes boring into him.

"So if you do anything to hurt her, you'd be on our bad side. And that's not somewhere you want to be. Understood?"

Shikamaru stood up to join Kankuro and Gaara. He looked at their serious expressions and sighed. This was a real drag, and completely unnecessary. He could almost laugh. "Guys, I'm not going to hurt her. She's the only girl I've ever liked; I'm not going to screw this up intentionally. And besides, if I ever hurt her you two would be the least of my worries." The two sand ninja looked at each other confused.

"Did you not get what we just said, Nara? Man, I thought you were meant to be the genius."

"Let's just say," Shikamaru said smirking, "I'm _a lot_ more scared of your sister than I am of you two."

* * *

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late, has Sh-" Temari called out as she entered, but stopped abruptly when she was met with the sound of her brothers laughing with her boyfriend. "What's going on? I told you two not to open the door!" she scolded through gritted teeth.

"Chill, Tem, we've just been catching up with your _boyfriend_." The way Kankuro dragged out the last word made her roll her eyes. "You could've told us you were dating the Nara kid."

"Well, to be honest this was exactly the situation I was trying to avoid. Who I date is none of your business. And I also don't want this to spread around yet so you keep your mouths shut am I clear?" The three men shared a look; she really was terrifying. "You ready to go Shikamaru?" She held the door open expectantly.

"Yeah, lead the way. It was good to see you guys," he said to Gaara and Kankuro as he headed off.

"Yeah good to see you too Shikamaru. Remember what we talked about." Kankuro winked at Shikamaru while Shikamaru just laughed uncomfortably. "Have a good night kids!" Kankuro waved awkwardly down the staircase.

"Shut up Kankuro!" Temari yelled, not even turning to wave him off. "Sorry about that, I hope they didn't say anything weird. They have a habit of interrogating my dates." she explained.

"Oh? And just how many dates is that?"

"Oh shut up," she drawled, punching him in the arm.

"Just give me a ballpark figure! Because mine is a big fat zero. Apart from you."

She sighed. "They weren't dates, just people the village elders set me up with. I hated them all." She stopped to face him at the bottom of the stairs. "Well? Seems my brothers didn't faze you, I'm impressed." She leaned forward on her elbows towards him.

"Yeah, well, it's gonna take more than protective brothers to keep me away from you. Like I said to them, there's someone who scares me even more and I put up with her every day." She smiled at him as he bent down the rest of the distance between them and locked his lips onto hers.

"Nara!" A voice boomed from Temari's floor, "I can still see you!"


	9. Chapter 9

9: Lemons

She was still getting used to the constant breeze and greenery of Konoha compared to her hometown. She'd been living here with her soon-to-be husband for three months now, and while she loved the village it was so different to hers that she couldn't help feeling homesick. She walked around the Sunday morning market greeting the shopkeepers she'd gotten to know recently and buying the essentials for their new house.

She stopped by the fruit vendor's stall looking at the huge variety of fruit and veg that was on offer. Konoha was a lot more fertile than her desert home, and she was always astounded at the colour and freshness or random produce she had never even seen before in her life. Tomatoes, peaches, oranges, pears, leafy greens, strawberries and more all stood out to her but she was more mesmerized by the smell that was coming from nearby.

She followed her nose, feeling a lot like Kiba, sniffing a little as she went until she found the source of the smell. She stopped at the lemonade stall in front of her and breathed in the heavenly citrus scent deeply. Lemons were something that Suna imported for special festivals or during the summer to cool the residents down. The smell of lemons took her back to the sweltering heat of Sunan summers and made her feel at home for one of the first times since she moved here.

She immediately bought a dozen of the luxury fruit and rushed home.

* * *

Shikamaru came back from being out with Ino doing wedding planning for the third time this week; the woman was more invested in his wedding than either himself or his bride but he couldn't complain. If he thought he had it bad, Temari had it ten times worse. He could even smell the fresh fragrance of lemons from the hallway, and immediately called out her name, confused.

"Tem?"

"In the kitchen!" She yelled back, and he walked in as she stood grating zest over her drink, smelling the grater like a mad woman.

"Are you... okay?" he asked warily. He knew full well that his fiancé was a surprising person by nature but he had to admit this was weird even for her.

"I'm fine. Look what I found! And they were so cheap," Temari said, sipping her freshly squeezed lemonade. "Mmmmm..." she sighed contentedly as she drank, sucking the straw so hard it indented.

He laughed as he reached for the jug she seemed to have been squeezing all afternoon based on the pile of carved out lemons on the counter and the all-around mess in the kitchen. Temari was a great cook but she couldn't keep a worktop clean to save her life. "You know, lemons are cheap in Konoha because no-one wants them. They're sour and bitter."

"Then don't drink my juice, smartass." She swatted his hand away from the jug and took another sip. "I think they're delicious. These were like a special treat back home."

He couldn't help but feel his heart sink a little bit when he heard her say 'home'. It still hurt him a little bit that she didn't see Konoha as her home, not because he was being childish but because it hurt him to know she still felt homesick and he was the reason for it.

"They remind me of summer in Suna. Everyone would have lemon ice or lemonade or something lemon flavoured." She trailed off when she saw something like hurt in his eyes. He was looking at the floor, rubbing the back of his neck like he always did when he felt guilty. "Hey," she got his attention, "what's going on?"

"Do you still get homesick that much?" he asked sheepishly. She looked him in the eyes; she wasn't expecting that.

"Um, I guess... why?"

"I just, I know it's stupid, but I feel really guilty every time you feel like you're missing Suna or your brothers. I just want to know you're really okay with all this. It's not too late to rethink things."

"Shikamaru, don't be ridiculous. Of course I'm going to get homesick I've been here for three months. But I don't regret anything. I'm excited, plus it makes sense for us to live here. I was practically living here anyway." She handed him the lemonade as a peace offering; she really didn't feel like fighting tonight. "Okay?"

"Okay." He said sipping the drink. He almost spat it out. "Oh my god! How much sugar did you put in this?"

"A teaspoon, why?" she said stone-faced.

"A teaspoon of sugar in a jug of lemons is like drinking pure acid. We need to do something about your taste buds."

"Maybe it tastes better this way," she smirked, leaning in and kissing him lightly.

"Nope, now you taste sour and bitter. Totally ruined kissing for me." He went to the sink and downed a full two glasses of water.

"Well, I think you've never tasted better." she said coyly, looking over her shoulder at him as she poured more into her cup.

"Seriously? A lemon fetish? You really are the weirdest person I know." He came up behind her and kissed her cheek.

"Not true," Temari sniggered, "Ino and Sai have this weird sex-painting fetish, where they coat their bodies in..."

"Ew gross she's like my sister, stop talking! How do you even know that?" Shikamaru asked, mortified.

"Ino talks," Temari said, visibly traumatised, "a lot."


	10. Chapter 10

10: Courting

It was only ten by the time she got into bed. She had just reached home at nine, and ate something small before she ran herself a bath. She really wasn't one for baths (she hated the idea of stewing in her own dirt and sweat) but Shikamaru had recently got her into them. He had even given her some weird muscle-relaxing bath mix to use after he realised how tense every muscle in her body was. He wasn't sure she'd ever relaxed before in her life.

She felt at ease but still exhausted when she got out and quickly moved to put on her baggy t-shirt and knee-length leggings that she slept in. She scooped her hair up into a bun but a few curly strands escaped from the front. All ready to hit the sack, she turned off the lights in her living room and kitchen.

Suddenly, her ears perked up. She heard a tapping noise coming from her bedroom. Immediately, she thudded across to her room and realised the noise was coming from behind her curtain. She pulled the patterned curtain open and saw the stones periodically hitting her window. Confused, she opened the window latch and peered her head outside, just as another stone came flying.

"Ow!" she shouted rubbing her forehead.

"Sorry!" Shikamaru shouted from the street below.

"What are you doing here?" she scowled at him, her head still aching from the hit.

"Can I come up?" He was trying to whisper but failing dramatically as her window was on the first floor. She just waved her hand at him, their usual signal for him to climb up the drainpipe outside her apartment. Things between them were fairly new and they didn't want the hassle of explaining their situation to people, especially to Temari's neighbours. They already had their suspicions seeing Shikamaru around her apartment all the time and seeing him sneaking in during the night and out in the mornings wouldn't leave much to the imagination.

He clambered up gracefully, making full use of his long limbs and slender body, and hoisted himself onto her window ledge. Like a practised act, he swung his legs into her room and dropped down onto her carpet.

"What's with the stone throwing, Nara?" She reverted back to her old name for him, back when they used to tease and insult each other, and Shikamaru knew he was going to have to fix her bad mood.

"I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to hit you I was just trying to be romantic... failed as usual I guess?" He gave her a sheepish smile and saw one creep onto her face.

"What do you want? It's late and I'm tired, and you know I'm not fun when I'm tired." she said, still rubbing her forehead.

"I really just wanted to see you. You look beautiful, by the way."

"Thank you..?" she said confused, looking down at her old pyjamas and messy hair.

"Here, let me take a look at that," he said, stepping in towards her and moving her hand aside to inspect the damage he'd done.

"I'm fine, Shikamaru." She felt her pulse quicken as he came close and held her face in his hands. There was only a small, red spot where the stone had hit her and he placed his lips over it.

"There, all better." He felt his breathing get heavy just from being around her and took a step away to clear the tense air around them. He broke the silence by clearing his throat.

"I just... I wanted to tell you something." He'd been building up the courage all day to tell her he loved her, only to realise he didn't have it in him. Not yet. There was too much that could go wrong; even though he knew exactly where his heart was he had no idea what she felt for him right now. She could break up with him and get scared off, or worse laugh at him in the process. No. It was too risky, he decided at the end of the day, but he still wanted to see her. He wanted to tell her something, he just didn't know what yet. He had hoped it would come to him on the way to her house but sadly, as he stood in front of her, he still had no idea what to say.

"Which is..." she prompted bluntly, feeling the exhaustion of the day straining on her patience. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and shifted his feet, which only added to Temari's frustration. "For God's sake, would you just say it?" she snapped at him.

"I wanted to say I like you, okay?" he snapped back. He sighed and looked down at the ground, embarrassed. "I wanted to see your face because I've been thinking about it all day. I can't stop thinking about you, even when it's annoying and I really want to. Whenever I can't sleep or get bored or even when I'm just walking you're the first thing that comes into my head. I've fallen for you. Big time."

Temari's eyes widened and mouth opened a little from the admissions. She'd never thought Shikamaru would ever get this serious about their relationship, and she'd never realised how much her cared about her either. She'd always prided herself on being able to read people but clearly she was worse than she thought.

"I don't know whether you feel the same way or not, and I'm not asking you to say that you do, I just thought you should know. And I'm not going to say the word right now but," he smiled, "I'm _very very very_ fond of you, Temari. And I'll wait however long it takes for you to feel the same way about me." That was the perfect place for him to end his speech she thought, but she could see he was about to keep going with a lot of unnecessary additions that would embarrass her even more. She quickly pecked him on the lips to stop him.

"I'm not used to this many compliments in one day. You're going to make me big-headed if you keep going."

"Even more than usual?" he replied mockingly, and she smacked him on the arm. He scooped her face up in his hand and snaked the other around her waist. Effortlessly, he pulled her towards him and she felt herself sink into his strong hands as she kissed him. The taste of him filled her mind with energy, and she felt alive and awake again. She held onto his jaw with one hand and ran the other into his hair while she tugged on his lower lip with her teeth. He slipped his tongue into her mouth and ran it along her soft lips, feeling his chest swell as he kissed her.

He slipped one hand under her t-shirt and gently ran it along her spine earning a moan of appreciation from her. He felt her soft skin as he moved his hand along her waist, her stomach and finally up to her breast. Cold hands squeezed hard as her hand clamped into his hair and pulled, and her head fell backward away from his mouth. He moved his lips to her neck and sucked gently on it as he squeezed that same spot again, knowing what she wanted. Again, her body writhed under his touch.

She reclaimed his lips with hers and pulled his hand out from under her shirt, interlacing her fingers with his. She tugged at his t-shirt hem, and pulled it off swiftly, wanting to feel his skin. She undid the button of his pants and started to pull the zipper down when he pulled away and caught her wrists in his hands.

"What's wrong?" she questioned, in no state for him to leave now.

"I have to go see my mom," he said, eyes closed and fighting of the pulsations where her hands had been.

" _That's_ what you're thinking about right now?" Temari breathed in disbelief. And here he'd been telling her how he couldn't stop thinking about her.

"No, I know, it's just... I don't think I can stop if we go any further. And I told her I'd stop by."

"Shikamaru," Temari sighed, "It's half past ten. You can see her after." She ran a hand up his toned chest. "Don't leave me now."

As he looked into her teal eyes he felt his lust returning and he knew he wanted to give in.

So he did.

* * *

After he gave her a kiss goodnight and climbed down the drainpipe, he turned to walk back to the Nara compound.

"Shikamaru?" he heard her call from the window. He turned back to her.

"Yeah?"

She was the one looking down sheepishly now, as she said, "Whenever you want to say that thing that you didn't say before," She cleared her throat, "I'll say it right back. Because I'm _very very very_ fond of you too."


	11. Chapter 11

11\. Bar Talk

"For once in your life, try not to be late, okay?" Ino nagged on the phone.

"Yeah, fine I'll be there. I'll see you later." Shikamaru said on the other end and she heard the dial tone as he hung up. She sighed; her teammate just hadn't been himself since the end of the war. It had been almost a year now and Shikamaru still seemed, for want of a better word, weird. He'd thrown himself into work, swapping his old laidback personality for a more driven one, which Ino supposed wasn't the worst thing, but it still wasn't natural to see him like this. She knew better than anyone what it was; Shikamaru wasn't the kind of guy who was going to talk about how he felt about losing his dad, even though that was probably the worst thing in the world for him. To cover it up, and to spend less time at home, he was going into overdrive.

She'd done the same thing herself for a while; she knew it was totally normal to try and avoid confronting it but it had got in the way of her work. How could she examine other people's minds when her own was so troubled? She was working through her grief but wasn't so sure he was doing the same.

That's why she'd arranged a little get together tonight. She figured if he wasn't going to talk about it then the least she could do was distract him for a night. She'd co-ordinated their whole Academy class to go out for drinks at a bar. After all, who was going to say no to a little drinking on a Friday night?

She was out in the market doing some shopping for her mom when she saw a familiar face. "Temari! Hey!" She waved at the blonde from across the street and went to greet her. "What brings you to town?"

"I'm just preparing for the first Shinobi Union meeting. We've got a lot going on right now and liaising between our villages beforehand cuts down the work for when we're actually there. How are you?" Temari asked.

"I'm fine thanks. Yeah I've been hearing about all of this from Shikamaru, he's really not enjoying the late nights."

"Well, that makes two of us." Temari chuckled. "At least he gets this weekend off, I'm working straight through. Tonight's the only break I get until next Monday."

"Tonight?" The cogs turned in Ino's head. Temari was free. Shikamaru was also free. Shikamaru, she was pretty sure, liked Temari. And the whole point of tonight _was_ to relax him... "Do you want to come out for a drink with all of us? We're all heading to the bar after work."

"Um..." Temari looked unsure. "Are you sure you want me to come to your guys' night out? I mean I don't really know everyone that well. Also I'm on duty and I probably shouldn't..."

"Oh come on!" Ino dialled up the charm to 100. "We're all friends here don't worry. And besides, you need one night of fun before you start a week of flat-out work. Trust me, it'll be great. Shikamaru's coming too so there will be at least one person you know."

Temari sighed and smiled. "Screw it, I'm in. When and where?"

* * *

Shikamaru walked to the bar after work. When he walked into the dimly lit room he heard his friends making the most noise in the whole bar right at the end. He strolled over, not really knowing why he was here except for the fact that Ino insisted and he felt bad bailing on her again.

"Shikamaru! You made it!" Ino bolted over and gave him a crushing hug, clearly a little uninhibited already. Shikamaru made his usual apologies for being late but she waved him off. "Doesn't matter," she said, "Now let's get you some booze so you can stop being so grumpy!"

He chatted and laughed at Naruto and Kiba having drinking competitions and generally had a good time. But still as he sat at the bar nursing a drink with his group's usual chaos unfolding around him, he felt a little empty. He couldn't explain why or what the feeling was but it was definitely there.

"Mind if I join you?" He heard her gritty voice and turned in his chair expecting to see her in her usual attire. However, as his head turned over his shoulder he was met with something he'd never seen before. Temari stood behind him in a plunging black jumpsuit, hair up in a loose bun with a few strands tumbling down her jawline and dangling earrings that contrasted her light features. He had honestly never seen or pictured her wearing anything other than her usual clothes but he had to admit it; she looked stunning. Apparently she'd stunned him out of words as he sat there just taking in her new appearance.

"Temari, you're here! And looking amazing, damn!" Ino once again sauntered over, giggling. She looked over at her dumbstruck teammate. "What's up with Shikamaru?"

He bounced back into action when he heard his name. "Huh?"

"I think I broke him," Temari whispered to Ino, as confused as she was. "You okay Shikamaru?"

"Yeah I'm fine, I just... didn't expect to see you here." He cleared his throat. "What _are_ you doing here?"

"Ino invited me," Temari replied apprehensively, "I thought she checked it was alright?"

"It's fine you're my guest! Now come on, you need a drink in your hand." Ino pulled Temari away before they figured her plan out.

A few shots and one arm-wrestle with Kiba later, Temari flopped into the seat next to Shikamaru. She ordered another cocktail and looked over at him. He looked... sad. And she wanted to fix that. She hated seeing him serious at work, but she'd always figured he had more fun with his friends outside of work. Seeing him depressed at a bar with all his friends seemed criminally wrong to her. She nudged him.

"What's going on in there?" She knocked on his forehead with her glass.

"Ow! Nothing." He shot her a glare.

"So why are you being so moody?"

He sighed. He knew he wasn't the most fun guy to hand around nowadays. He just didn't want to be a kid anymore, he wanted to be as adult as his village needed him to be. He tried explaining that he wasn't going to act like a kid to Temari; she already knew all this from their numerous chats over the last year. She took a minute to let it sink in and then leaned over to him and blew a raspberry in his face.

"So what? You're twenty years old Shikamaru, you need to have a bit of fun. I know it's not easy trying to find the balance but you don't need to be grown up all the time. Our jobs are serious enough, you need to learn how to let loose when you're free. Take me, for example," she stood up and leaned against the bar proudly, "I have work tomorrow at seven in the morning. Am I letting that stop me?" She took a dramatic swig of her drink and slammed the glass down.

"Clearly not," Shikamaru mumbled.

"Exactly," she softened a little and looked him straight in the eye. "So, what do you say we get a few more drinks in you and get out of here? Do something really fun?" She smiled at him, excited but also caring and soothingly. Something about her smile put him at ease; or more simply, something about _her_ put him at ease. He let a smile creep its way onto his face too and downed his drink in one.

"Alright, what do you have in mind?"

* * *

He woke up to bright sunshine and birds chirping. He felt groggy and dizzy as he tried to ease himself up. As soon as he was upright his head started pounding. He groaned. He'd never felt so awful in his life. He looked over at his clock and saw a note next to a glass of water.

 _Dropped you off here last night after you passed out. Drink this whole glass and you might feel a bit better. Had fun with you yesterday – you're a lot better company when you're drunk. See you around,  
_ _\- Temari_

 _P.S. you paid a guy 50 dollars for the shirt you're wearing. I'd make the most of it._

He looked down at the white t shirt with a very curvaceous, bikini-clad body on it. It went all the way down to his knees and he was currently wearing it as a nightie. He smacked his forehead with his palm while he wondered how long he was walking around wearing this last night. He replayed the last line of her letter and could hear Temari's smug chuckle behind it.

Suddenly the phone rang setting off needles and hammers in his brain. He stiffly leaned over to his bedside table and picked up. "Hello?" he croaked.

"Shikamaru? Is that you? Sorry to bother you on your day off but we need you to come in. We're drowning in paperwork and can't figure out your system. Can you get here as soon as possible?" a stressed-sounding Kakashi begged.

"Yep, I'll be there in ten." he managed to get out of his sore, parched throat. He rubbed his face as he put the phone down and flopped against his bedframe. _You've got to be kidding_ , he thought to himself.

When he traipsed into the Hokage's office, dragging his heavy limbs into the room, he saw Temari sitting behind a stack of papers as high as her head. Kakashi explained where the problem was and Shikamaru quickly sorted it, wanting nothing more than to go home and sleep this off. Kakashi left for his lunch break leaving Shikamaru alone with an extraordinarily quiet Temari.

"How you holding up back there?" he called out, despite not being able to see her face.

She groaned in response. She peeked her head over the stack of papers so Shikamaru could see her pale face which was largely hidden by the huge sunglasses she'd chosen to wear. "I've had better days." She smiled at him as she slumped back into her chair and he did the same in his. "Worth it though, right?"

"A hundred percent." He smiled back. "So..." he said leaning forward in his chair, "what did I actually do last night?"

She snorted and chuckled; she had the least lady-like laugh he'd ever heard but it was somehow still relaxing to hear. He felt alive and excited for the first time in a year when he saw her devilish smile. "Are you sure you want to know?"


	12. Chapter 12

12\. Just Right

He knew it wasn't anything special. It was a Saturday night, they'd both got out of work at a reasonable time, they'd cooked dinner together and now they were sitting on her sofa together; she was reading a book with her huge "old lady" reading glasses as she called them, while he watched something half-heartedly on the TV. He kept glancing at her intermittently just to have a look at her face, to see her eyes skimming over the page and absorbing whatever it was on there. He smirked to himself.

"Stop staring." she said bluntly, without looking up from the page.

"I can't." She looked up from her book. He had a cheeky smile on his face that said he was trying to annoy her. She couldn't help laughing at his face and sniggered as she prodded his thigh with her toes.

"Stop it! You're weirding me out." He grabbed her feet and pulled them across his lap.

"I just like looking at you alright? Now leave me alone." He spun his head round to the TV and stopped looking at her. He could feel her eyes on him but refused to look at her.

She just kept her eyes on his. She just needed to hold her laugh in for a little bit longer until he cracked. She saw him slowly turn his head back to her and that was that. They both burst out laughing so hard that Temari snorted.

"Attractive," he breathed out mid-laugh.

"You're an idiot," she said turning her attention back to her book. He loved his evenings in with her so much. He really felt like he'd never been more relaxed in his life than when he was just sitting with her in peace. He absent-mindedly ran his fingertips up and down her calf and went back to watching his programme on cooking.

There was a part of him that felt as though he never wanted any of his friends to see him like this; whipped, completely, and nothing like he'd ever been before. He was a bit embarrassed, if he was being completely honest, about the way he felt. But at the same time he wanted everyone to know just how much he loved this woman, just how blissfully happy he was.

He thought the world of her. He thought she shouted at him just the right amount to get him to do things with his life, he thought she gave him just the right amount of love to make him feel amazing but never to let him take it for granted. She was just tough enough to admit how she felt but be independent and strong. She was just right for him in so many ways. But that wasn't, he decided, something he needed to tell the world right away.

Because he had well and truly fallen for Temari, and there was nowhere he'd rather be, and no one he'd rather be with.


	13. Chapter 13

13: Surprise

"Thanks for this," she said giving him a warm smile from across the table and reaching out for his hand. It was the first time she'd been in Konoha for her birthday and although she'd never been big on birthdays it was always something she had shared in some shape or form with her family. Running between the two villages was taking its toll on her, even more so now that she was with Shikamaru and constantly wanted to be around him. It just made it even harder to do her job.

He smiled back at her and took her hand in his. "Anytime. Happy birthday Tem." He kissed her hand lightly and she swore she felt herself blush as if it was their first date all over again.

They walked back to his place down the streets of Konoha as everyone else got on with their preparations for the upcoming festival. Lanterns and lights were strung up across the streets which lit up the sky with a soft, pink and orange glow. She kept her hands in her pockets and walked separately from Shikamaru in public; it just seemed natural to her to not be all mushy around everyone else. She took in the sights and he didn't say much but that was okay. She never needed constant conversation or anything, most of the time she just enjoyed his company.

They got to his door and he took out his keys while she waited and looked around the Nara complex; a modest close of beautifully carved wooden buildings of which Shikamaru's was one of the smaller ones. His parents' house was by far the biggest and most ornate. As she spun her head back to see what was taking him so long she was caught off-guard by his lips on hers. In the half-cold outdoors his warm lips felt welcoming and soft, and she kissed him back with the same firm tenderness that he used. She didn't want to open her eyes after he broke away and stayed dazed for a short while. When she finally opened her eyes he had a cheeky grin on his face and laced his fingers into hers. "What was that for?" she asked while he opened the door and tugged her arm to pull her inside.

"Just, because. Can't I kiss my girlfriend on her birthday?" She could practically hear the smile on his face as he talked. He was being a little weird but if she was honest that wasn't totally unheard of for Shikamaru. He changed moods a lot and sometimes was a lot more expressive than others. And besides, she wasn't one to comment on changing temperaments so she let it slide.

He chucked his keys on the table and walked inside without turning any of the lights on. She followed him through into his kitchen where she saw a small lantern with a candle burning inside it. "Where did that come from?" she asked, walking up to it in wonder. It was small and orange-pink just like the ones outside except this was a floating lantern. The markings in the side were ornate and artful and let out small strips and patterns of light.

"Why don't we take it outside?" She eyed him up suspiciously. Something was definitely going on and he was acting very weird about it.

"You're not doing a great job at answering my questions, you know." She nonetheless followed him into his backyard. She was not expecting what she saw.

"SURPRISE!" She almost jolted from the sudden noise of party poppers, streamers, whistles and of course her shouting friends all gathered around a whole collection of mini lanterns. They all came running at her and piled on top of her before she could even get a glance at their faces. She was laughing so hard from the shock and the swarm of bodies climbing on her that she was almost wheezing out of breath. She could see right above her Ino and Sakura, followed by Kiba and Naruto and several others from Shikamaru's class who she'd become friends with over the years.

"Oh my god what is everyone doing here?" she laughed as she regained some composure and brushed herself off.

"Surprise party of course! Can't let you do a birthday without the proper procedure now could we? Speaking of which..." Kiba trailed off, looking over her shoulder.

She turned around to see her boyfriend's face lit up by candles on her favourite cake as he carried it towards her. She could see his little smile from knowing she'd love that cake; she sometimes hated how well he knew her but not tonight. With the cacophony of awful singing behind her, she dug into the best birthday cake she'd ever tasted.

* * *

"So you really had no idea?" Sakura asked incredulously, pointing out all the ways they'd almost messed up and let it slip they were planning this.

"Not at all, you guys are good secret party planners." She took another bite of her third helping of cake.

"We didn't plan anything," Ino said suggestively wiggling her eyebrows, "it was all Shikamaru." Temari was speechless. That lazy boy organizing this whole party? And managing to keep it a secret from her for weeks? He really willing to get off his ass for her, she thought lovingly. She felt her chest swell a little bit looking at him finally relaxing and enjoying himself for the first time this evening. She smiled a bit and went back to her conversation.

* * *

As the evening came to a close the group all gathered around the lanterns and held one up each between a few of them. Temari held up her own from Shikamaru but she let him get in on it; he had planned this whole thing anyway.

"I can't believe you planned a whole party for me." She looked at him, illuminated by the orange glow of the lantern, the light catching his strong jaw and defined features. She didn't know if it was the lighting or the alcohol or the fact he couldn't deny he cared about her now but he'd never looked so attractive before.

"Well, there's no one else I'd ever bother planning one for. Way too much trouble. But it was worth it for the look on your face." She smiled up at him and shook her head in disbelief. She was going to owe this guy big time but that was okay if it meant he kept giving her this treatment.

"3, 2, 1, let go!" Everyone released their lanterns into the sky and watched them float away into the dark, six little orange specks among the stars.

"Thank you, for all this. This is amazing; no one's ever done anything like this for me before." She hooked her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a long kiss. Usually she'd feel embarrassed doing this in front of everyone but she didn't care today. She was too happy to care. She ignored the whoops and whistles behind them as she tried to convey every inch of her emotion to him; and to try and make him feel just as loved as she did right now.

They pulled apart slightly breathless and he tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ear as he held her face. "Happy birthday Tem. I love you." It wasn't the first time he'd said it but it felt exactly the same.

"I love you too." She gave him a small peck before Kiba and the rest were breaking up their moment and dragging them back to the party.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Beginnings

Choji sighed and looked at his watch again. His stupid friends were late _again_ and he was pretty sure he could figure out why. He decided to just order without them and get a head start on the barbeque, since he was going to make them split the bill anyway.

About twenty mins later, Shikamaru and Ino turned up at the restaurant not even looking apologetic for being almost half an hour late. Didn't they know he didn't like eating alone? It just made him more anxious and that meant he needed to eat even more. Selfish jerks.

"Sorry we're late Choji, we just got caught up," Ino said sliding gracefully into the booth.

"Yeah, this double date thing turned out to be less of a drag than expected," Shikamaru chimed in while Choji stayed quiet. He knew they weren't to blame; they were all growing up and had busy lives and it was becoming harder and harder to find time to spend together. What was worse was the fact that both Ino and Shikamaru were dating people now, so Choji either had the choice of fifth wheeling or staying out of it all together. But staying out of it meant being distanced from his two best friends... the whole thing was a mess, but that was life. It was bound to happen sooner or later.

As for himself, Choji didn't have any romantic prospects right now, nor could he imagine ever having any. He knew he was a big guy, and the kind of person people would see as a friend, not a boyfriend. Girls would call him a sweetheart, the nicest guy, but he knew what that was code for. It meant he was a friend and nothing more. He sighed again.

"Choji? What's up man?" Shikamaru nudged him with his shoulder so Choji gave him a soft smile.

"Nothing, don't worry about it. So what did you guys end up doing on your date?" As Ino dived into the details of their first double date with Temari and Sai, Shikamaru couldn't avoid the hint of sadness in Choji's smile as he listened. He'd had a plan in the works for a while now, and maybe it was time to set it in motion. He smiled to himself and slid out of the booth.

"I'm just going to the restroom, save me some beef okay?" He said, as Ino continued her story.

"I make no promises!" Choji called after him. He could only shake his head and chuckle. His friend really hadn't changed at all.

He went to the back of the restaurant where Choji and Ino couldn't see him, opened his frequently contacted and called his girlfriend from the top of the list. She picked up on the first ring. "Hello?"

"Hey Tem, it's me."

"Yeah I know, I have caller ID. We live in the 21st century Shikamaru." He rolled his eyes so hard she could practically hear it over the phone. "What's up?"

"Well, you know how your friend's in town tonight? And you guys were gonna go out for dinner anyway? I was thinking, why don't you come have dinner with us?"

"So we can crash your old team dinner and awkwardly laugh at in jokes we don't get? I think we'll pass. Although it is sweet you want to see me again after spending the _whole day_ together."

He laughed. "Well yeah, you are my girlfriend after all. But this isn't really for me..." he trailed off hoping she'd get his gist.

As usual, she cottoned on faster than expected. She smiled a scheming smile on the other end of the phone. "Oh okay, well should I tell Karui to wear something slutty?"

He chuckled nervously. "You know, Choji's an easy-going guy, I think slutty might just scare him off. _I_ on the other hand have no problem-"

"Goodbye Shikamaru, see you in a bit." He let himself smile at the playful lilt in her voice before heading back to the table.

* * *

Although he was enjoying being with his friends for a night, Shikamaru couldn't stop his leg twitching with nervous energy. He knew this was a risky move; either Choji and Karui would hit it off spectacularly, or Choji would end up hating him for ambushing him with a pretty girl. Either way, Shikamaru just wanted his friend to be happy, and he was willing to suffer the consequences if this went badly.

He saw her immediately when she came through the door. He couldn't help it; her hair always seemed like a beacon to him and he noticed it instantly. _Right_ he thought to himself _game face on_.

"Temari? What are you doing here?" he said as normally as possible as Temari and Karui neared the table.

She shot him a glare. He was definitely going to pay for breaking up her night with her friend. "Well, we were hungry and decided to come get some food. We had no idea you guys were going to be here too." To Temari's credit, she was an amazing actress. She sounded as defensive and annoyed at usual. Nonetheless, Karui rolled her eyes next to Temari.

"Well you should join us! Come on there's plenty of space." Ino chirped enthusiastically as she scooted in so she was facing Choji.

"Actually Ino, I was hoping you could show me where the restrooms are. Karui, you don't mind sitting with Shikamaru and Choji for a bit right?" Temari smiled, and all but physically manhandled Ino out of the booth and put Karui in her place. "We'll be back in a bit!"

Karui sighed as she slid into the booth so she was halfway opposite both Shikamaru and Choji. To say it was awkward would have been an understatement, but thankfully Karui piped up before Shikamaru had to intervene. "So, I haven't seen either of you for a while. What's been going on with you?" Choji looked at Shikamaru. God, he was going to make this difficult.

"Not much really, just lots of missions and not much time for anything else." Shikamaru said.

Karui laughed. "Yeah, you're lucky you work with Temari or you'd probably have a hard time seeing each other if your schedule is anything like hers."

"Yeah, that's probably fair. I think the last we properly talked must have been Naruto's wedding right?"

"Oh yeah! God, has it really been that long? I don't think I saw you there, Choji."

The sudden mention of his name made him look up from his food. She knew his name? He half spluttered out his response from the surprise. "Y-yeah, I don't remember seeing you either, Karui."

A silence settled briefly on the table. Shikamaru started panicking; was he going to have to do all the work here? Then he had his lightbulb moment. Talk about food. Choji was born to talk about food, he could do it in his sleep and probably sometimes did. "Man, the food at that wedding was amazing, right Choji?"

"Oh yeah, I've never eaten so much in my life! There was food everywhere they really went all out. They has shrimp and sushi and barbeque..."

"And those ribs! Did you try the ribs?" Karui chimed in. _Yes! It's working!_ Shikamaru thought to himself.

"Oh yeah I forgot about those! The best thing there was the cake though. I've never had a cake like it, they said it was a speciality from somewhere and I can't find it anywhere in Konoha."

"It was from Kumo," said Karui, almost sheepishly. "Did you really like it?"

Worried he'd said something wrong, Choji tried to backtrack a little. "Yeah, why? Did you not like it?"

Karui smiled a huge, ear-to-ear grin. "No, it's just that I made it! I'm so glad someone who eats so much good food liked it!"

"We're back!" Ino said in her sing-song voice as her and Temari slid in next to Karui. Shikamaru just gave her a smile and raised his eyebrows a little. She knew what it meant; things were going according to plan.

* * *

"Goodnight guys!" Ino called as she walked into her complex after they walked her home. Despite being in a war together, Choji and Shikamaru still felt the need to walk her home whenever they went out. She'd never told Shikamaru, but she thought it was the sweetest thing, and it made her like him even more. With just the four of them left, Temari laced her fingers with Shikamaru's and he put his arm around her in response. They weren't usually this couple-y when other people were around but they figured if they walked together Choji and Karui would have to walk together too. It didn't work though; Choji stayed well apart from her even though they were talking and she was clearly making him laugh. Shikamaru looked down at Temari and kissed her forehead.

"Come on guys, at least wait till the two of us are gone," Karui smirked.

"I second that," Choji said, raising his hand which made Karui laugh.

"You know, I think we will do just that. Come on, Shikamaru, feel like a walk by the river?" Temari gave him a soft smile and held out her hand. He gladly took it, keen to leave his friend alone but also to spend some time with his girlfriend. Karui was right, they barely had any spare time for each other.

They left Choji to walk Karui home. Shikamaru knew he was too much of a gentleman to do anything tonight but it was better to leave them alone anyway. He sat by the river in the dark with Temari sat between his legs, cocooned by him. He relished the feeling of her in his arms. They were growing up and it was hard, sure, but he couldn't help feeling that even though it was different and so much more of a drag, it was a pretty good life.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Steps

"So, er, this is pretty much it. This is my place." She chucked her keys on the table trying to make it look casual but in reality she'd spent the whole morning cleaning the place to make it as presentable as possible. The last thing she wanted was for him to walk in and see her dirty clothes and piles of dishes lying around; she'd lose all her moral high ground instantly.

It wasn't much she'd admit; enough to be comfortable, sure, but she hadn't ever furnished the little flat properly since she split her time so she was mostly in Suna. Although she loved her home in Suna with her brothers, she was actually becoming more and more attached to this place, her little recluse in the middle of her (closely) second favourite village. But today it was more than just that; today her little flat was being turned into a place where she could bring Shikamaru, where she could hang out with her-

She stopped herself. She didn't actually fully know what they were but she did not by any means want to jump the gun and be the first one to say anything. She was just making him do the work for once in his life, it wasn't like she was scared or anything. She was Temari, daughter of a Kazekage; she wasn't going to be scared of something so trivial.

"It's nice," he said wondering into her living room/kitchen area. He seemed to be absorbing his surroundings, analysing everything carefully. In a few moments he was going to have a lot of smartass comments about it, but for now it was nice to watch him just contemplate everything around him. She sat on her couch so he would follow suit. He instead continued to look around at her windowsills and dresser tops.

"Are you okay?" she asked, leaning back against the couch cushions and peering over them to face him.

"It's not very personal, huh?" he smirked. _Here it comes_ she thought.

"Yeah, well I'm a very private person. I don't like having too much stuff on display." He grunted. She really didn't know what to make of that. Sometimes he was so infuriatingly hard to read she wished she was with someone simpler. Someone who would show her how much he cared and would lay all the cards on the table so she knew exactly where she stood. But, then again, she needed someone to keep her interest piqued and well, you couldn't deny Shikamaru was a pretty intriguing guy. "I'm gonna get some dinner going, want to give me a hand?"

He snapped out of his reverie finally. "Oh yeah, sure." For a lazy guy Shikamaru was a great cook with a lot of innate skill. She had no idea where it came from as he didn't seem like the kind of kid that spent hours watching his parents cook but he just seemed to know how all the different tastes and spices worked together, like it was some big puzzle he'd put together. They relaxed into the cooking as he allowed himself to be a little more childish than usual with her and she let her guard down a lot more than she was used to. Sometimes when he made her laugh she could swear she could see her whole life like this, but it was way too early for that kind of thinking and honestly, it terrified her she would even have those thoughts.

But she still felt it. She felt how safe and secure his arms wrapped around her felt as she stirred the pan with him watching over her shoulder. She felt her heart flutter a little when he kissed her cheek; not anything sexual or heated just a simple quick kiss that made her feel grounded. He seemed to get this whole dating thing so much more easily than she did and it bothered her massively. He just always knew how often they should be going on dates, where to take her, how to treat her. She had no idea what she was doing; it had been years since she learned to care for someone else and the people she cared about in this world could be counted on less than one hand. Honestly, it was hard enough admitting she cared for Shikamaru and that he was one of her few cherished people, let alone expressing it in her touch and actions. "Something wrong?" he said, brushing some hair out of her face as she realised she'd been staring at him over her shoulder for way longer than is acceptable.

"No, sorry, just lost in thought." she smiled softly.

"Yeah, I'd get lost staring into my eyes too," he said with mock seriousness. "Did you know they're mesmerising?"

She chortled loudly, a half scoff, saying "Oh really? I thought my eyes were the mesmerising ones. This town's not big enough for the both of us kiddo."

He caught her unsuspecting as he caught her lips in his. "You win then. Such a demanding woman, my god." She chuckled and returned her attention to the food.

* * *

Dinner wrapped up and plates in the dishwasher, they sunk into her couch exhausted from a long day. Wanting to take charge in the progress of their relationship for once, she pulled herself into his lap making Shikamaru's eyes widen a little. She couldn't help laughing at his response. "Relax cowboy, I don't have the energy for that tonight. Some other time maybe," she said kissing his jawline. He muttered something about her being troublesome and proceeded to wrap his arms around her midriff to hold her steady.

She looked up at him as he chatted to her about life; she noticed he had a lot of deep thoughts about life that he didn't share with anyone else but for some reason always shared with her. He said it was because she didn't think he was stupid when he said it, but she doubted very much anyone would find his wise, old brain stupid. "Oh wait, I just remembered," he said, detangling himself and earning a small whine from Temari. He went over to his bag and pulled out a small wrapped rectangle.

"Why'd you get me a present?" she asked grabbing it from him.

"Well, I thought it would be a nice addition to all the pictures in your house," he gestured around, "but it seems my picture is going to get a little lonely here." She unwrapped it to find a framed picture of the two of them on their third date, having a picnic near the forest.

"Shikamaru, it's so great I don't even know what to say." She scratched the back of her head. "Does it ever bother you that I suck at this so much more than you?"

"What was that? Did you just admit I'm better than you at something?" She rolled her eyes and chucked a pillow at him.

"You know what I mean. I mean does it worry you that I'm not there yet?"

"I mean yeah all the time, but I just figured you'd get there whenever you're ready. I've had ages to think about all this stuff but I get it that you haven't. So whenever you want to, you can return the favour." He smiled at her with so much comfort before furrowing his eyebrows slightly. "I mean now you're bringing it up I'm a little worried. Should I be worried?"

She let herself giggle for once. "No, not at all. I really like you I just don't really know how all this works."

"And I do? I'm younger than you and I've never done this before. I mean it terrifies me, of course, but what scares me more is never doing this stuff with you so I try it out and see if you get scared off."

She smiled at that. He always had a way of putting things logically so she'd understand. She cradled the little picture in her hands and decided it was time to start being brave. At least for now it didn't look like he was getting scared off easily.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Veteran

"Ow!" She woke up with a kick to the shin from Shikamaru who was, as usual, fast asleep next to her. He had been tossing and turning in his sleep for the past two hours which meant Temari hadn't slept in the last two hours. She eventually gave in and decided to wake him up from whatever was troubling him. She tried a gentle nudge but she should have known that wouldn't work. One of the first things she learnt about Shikamaru is it takes an earthquake to wake him up from sleep. She resorted to a gentle kick to his side but accidentally pushed him off the bed.

He shot upright as soon as he hit the ground with a shaky gasp. It took him a few seconds to get his bearings but after a few deep breaths he calmed down. He covered his face with a hand as he slowed his breathing and heart rate. He felt a slender arm slide across his shoulders while a soft hand enveloped his and pried it away from his face. As his pounding heartbeat subsided he could hear her gentle, soothing voice calling his name. "Shikamaru."

"Huh? Hi, yeah, sorry." She looked in his eyes, searching for any remnant of the dream he was having but couldn't find anything. He just looked exhausted and scared, so she gently kissed his forehead, pulled him back into the bed and held him while he fell asleep.

* * *

In the next two weeks, he started having his nightmares more frequently. Almost every other night he would wake up sweating with his heart racing and Temari still had no idea why. If she asked about it he would just say he didn't want to talk about it, but he'd always go back to sleep by wrapping his arms and legs around her, holding her tightly. Finally she was fed up of constantly being woken up in the night and decided to make him talk about it.

"What is it?" she asked as softly as she could. She was never used to being comforting but she was trying her best to be someone dependable for Shikamaru. "What do you keep dreaming about? You can tell me."

She could she him staring deep into her eyes for trust, strength and comfort. "It doesn't make you any weaker if you tell me. I'm not trying to fix you I just want to know." He looked down at his hands and took a few deep breaths.

"It's not easy living through a war is it?" was all he said. He flicked his eyes back up to Temari's worried ones. She didn't want to give him any reason not to trust her so she just shook her head honestly. "I dream that we're back there." In an instant she understood. She knew exactly what he felt, what he was scared of and what he was dreaming about. She knew because she'd had the exact same dreams. "It's always the same; we're on that battlefield and we're helpless while everyone around us dies and the scariest thing is that I can't see you."

She laced her fingers with his and rubbed over his knuckle with the pad of her thumb. She used her other hand to stroke his cheek just below where tears were forming but stayed silent. "And then I see it; I see your body curled up on the ground, the same way it is next to me when we sleep only it's covered in blood. And that's when I wake up." She traced her hand over his chest and felt his racing heartbeat just from talking about it. Moving her hand up to his chin and tilting it towards her face, she spoke.

"I'm not going anywhere." She made sure to look him dead in the eye as she continued. "We've survived, Shikamaru, me and you are survivors. We aren't going back there, and not even a war would get rid of me. I'm here by your side, not lost in the frenzy like I was then. I'm right here with you."

"I know," he responded, "and I'm here too. But the difference is I never realised how much that war could have taken from me. I had to deal with what I lost when I came home but I never had to deal with the hypotheticals. It terrifies me that I almost lost you without even getting to be with you. It terrifies me that now I have something to lose. And I feel like a coward the way I fight when I want to come back to you at the end of it."

She almost laughed. "You have no idea how much I can relate. It scares me too having not just my life but _our_ life together to lose. But it doesn't make us cowards, does it? It just makes us more cautious and less blasé about throwing our lives into every battle. And it makes me fight to make sure I come home at the end of the day."

He smiled a small, sad smile. Brushing her hair away, he kissed her slowly and softly to say what he felt but couldn't put into words. "Yeah you're right," he said and kissed her temple, "as always."

She smirked and looked into his eyes once more before turning off the lights and crawling into bed. They both slept soundly for the first time in an eternity, but tangled in each other's arms to feel secure.


End file.
